The present invention relates to processes and ingredient formulations for preparing crumb products, particularly chocolate crumb products, which include milk solids and sweetener, for preparing chocolate products and to preparation of chocolate products with the crumb products.
Milk chocolate differs from dark or plain chocolate in that it contains milk solids and the essential part of a process for preparing milk chocolate is the method used to incorporate the milk solids. Milk chocolate is virtually moisture-free in that it contains from 0.5-1.5% water, while full cream milk contains about 87.5% water, the remainder being about 12.5% milk solids including fat.
One method of removing the 87.5% water from milk is by evaporation of the liquid milk and drying to a powder, and a traditional method of producing milk chocolate is by mixing the milk powder together with cocoa liquor or cocoa nibs, sugar, and cocoa butter, followed by refining, conching and tempering.
Another method which results in removing the 87.5% water from milk is by condensing and drying a mixture comprising either liquid milk or milk concentrate together with sugar and cocoa liquor under vacuum and at elevated temperatures to produce a chocolate crumb powder. This process for making chocolate crumb was originally intended to preserve milk solids in a stable form over long periods of time, and the chocolate crumb is used as an intermediary product in another traditional method of production of milk chocolate which comprises mixing chocolate crumb with cocoa butter, followed by refining, conching and tempering.
One advantage of chocolate crumb powder is that it has excellent storage properties and prevents rancidity of the fats in the milk. This enables the chocolate crumb to be manufactured well in advance of the manufacture of the milk chocolate, and the crumb can be transported easily to any desired destination. In addition, the use of chocolate crumb instead of milk powder provides a rich, creamy partially caramelised flavor which has proved extremely desirable to a large number of consumers. Although milk is sometimes transported to chocolate factories where the crumb is produced, since milk soon turns sour, it is preferable to install the crumb factories in dairy farming rural regions where there is a steady supply of fresh liquid milk. Often the crumb factories are in chocolate factories in dairy regions.
It would be convenient to manufacture crumb-type chocolates in regions where it has not previously been feasible and attempts have been made to imitate the flavor produced by the crumb process using standard milk powders. However, none of these methods has yet produced an adequate substitute.
For example, Great Britain Complete Patent Specification No. 1 425 839 describes a method for manufacturing a milk chocolate, wherein the process steps comprise melting sugar by heating it to a temperature of between 188.degree. and 210.degree. C., mixing the heated, molten sugar with milk powder, and processing the mixture with other chocolate--making ingredients to form a milk chocolate. However, molten sugar is difficult to handle and requires a high energy input, and amorphous sugar may be formed together with a high viscosity which could influence the texture and lead to non-desirable flavors at the high temperature used.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,622,342 describes a method for preparing chocolate crumb from milk solids by dry blending the milk solids with sugar and cocoa liquor and then extrusion--cooking the mixture in the presence of a little water at a temperature from about 104.degree. to 127.degree. C. for a period of from about 1-3 seconds followed by cooling and comminuting. The chocolate crumb may be used to produce milk chocolate by conventional methods. However, the capital cost of the extruder is very high, and the process reaction time is very short, which may inherently limit the range of flavors.
Great Britain Complete Patent Specification No. 1 537 377 describes a method for making a milk chocolate in which a mixture based on milk and sugar is prepared and then dried under reduced pressure to form a product of the crumb type which is compressed under a pressure of at least 100 kg/cm.sup.2 and subsequently processed into milk chocolate. However, the process is only concerned with the production of white crumb, and the vacuum/evaporation process is carried out at a temperature of only about 80.degree. C., and at such a low temperature there will be little or no caramelisation and a restricted flavor.
German Patent Application Publication No. DE 35 02 446 describes a method for the preparation of chocolate crumb which comprises mixing milk powder and icing sugar and water at about 80.degree. C. and then adding cocoa paste and heating to about 100.degree. to 110.degree. C. in a slowly revolving mixer (the water and heat being introduced in the form of steam through nozzles), followed by drying. However, the use of icing sugar is more expensive than ordinary sugar and gives a different texture. In addition, icing sugar causes the formation of large lumps which can increase the viscosity and cause blockages. Further, this document gives no indication of the reaction time nor the quantities of ingredients used, except the water.